Clay meets the press Posted on 05/28/2003 8:20:50 AM PDT by Mister Magoo
Is Clay gay? You know we asked
Advocate.com was on the scene in Los Angeles for the American Idol finale and couldn’t resist asking runner-up Clay Aiken backstage if he knew how many of his gay fans hope that he’s family too.
By Alonso Duralde
An Advocate.com exclusive posted May 22, 2003
OK, so when Fox offered me press credentials to attend the big climactic results show of the second season of American Idol, I figured I could write something funny for Advocate.com about fashion (season 1 finalist Christina Christian carried a small dog with her down the red carpet) or bad singing (did you hear season 2 finalist Rickey Smith butcher Earth, Wind & Fire during the medley? Ouch) or Paula Abdul (guess what, Miss Thing, I grew up wanting to be a critic). But all that got pushed aside after I stood up at the press conference after the show wrapped and asked runner-up Clay Aiken the big question: “A lot of your fan base thinks you’re gay. Any comment on that?”
First, a little background for those who haven’t been watching the show. Aiken has gotten a great deal of press over the course of the show because of the big voice that emanates from his scrawny body. Throughout American Idol, Aiken has had his own Extreme Makeover, changing everything from his hair (fluffed out to cover up his car door ears) to the removal of his nerdy spectacles. While teen girls and middle-aged moms went all swoony for Aiken, the gaydars of queer viewers nationwide were going off. Loudly. Here’s a performer, we thought, who can’t open his mouth without littering the Idol stage with hairpins. The fluttering eyelids; the high-pitched chuckle; the angry-diva faces pulled whenever Simon Cowell criticized him; the hammy, Sam Harris-meets-Mandy Patinkin show-tune vocalizing—just about everything Clay does reads as gay. I’m not saying that I know whether he’s queer or not, but if he isn’t, he’s a very gay-acting heterosexual.
Clay meets the press
My boyfriend talks about Aiken’s goal to become a special-needs teacher as one that screams out as a career track often pursued by gay men. And my boyfriend also points out that there’s a definite subset of closeted Christian males in their 20s (having been one himself) who have so successfully repressed their sexuality that they don’t even know that they’re really gay. And that brand of asexuality is also a hallmark of Aiken’s singing. For all his technical proficiency, there’s no feeling that he’s ever experienced the painful love he likes to sing about. There’s no heartbreak in that voice, and there’s certainly no sex. If there were really such a magazine as Non-Threatening Boy (a favorite of The Simpsons’ Lisa), Aiken would be the Crush of the Year.
Jim Verraros and Ejay Day
So anyway, back to Wednesday’s American Idol finale and the press conference. After Clay told a gushing female reporter that he’s looking for a girl who’s “not too primped and permed and curled,” I asked my question.
He looked right at me. Then, without a word, he looked at another reporter and called on him. Mind you,up to this point almost no reporters had been called on—it was one of those yell-out-your-question-or-forget-it situations. But Clay was definitely not going to answer my question, not even to give me some “I love all my fans” or “It doesn’t matter what people think, as long as they buy my album” bromides. I got nothing from him. I got the brush-off. I got a freeze-out worthy of Joan Crawford.
Ruben and Clay
The generous interpretation of this is that he thought I was from the National Enquirer or some other supermarket tabloid, out to dig up dirt. Because after all, we all know the worst thing you can say about someone is that they’re gay, right? And it’s not like American Idol is dying to have an openly gay singer on the show: The Advocate left a million messages about Jim Verraros on Fox publicity voice mail during his stint on the program, but he ultimately came out in this magazine only after Idol was over. So what if British Pop Idol winner Will Young’s album topped the U.K. charts after he came out of the closet? Homosexuality is a subject the Idol-makers would just as soon avoid, apparently.
As to the not-so-generous interpretation of Aiken’s silence, I leave that for readers to figure out.
I thought it was Falwell. I could be wrong. But I'm fairly certain that the gay community also "adopted" TW as a bit of a cultural icon. But it didn't catch on to the extent of the color purple or the rainbow. Again, I could be wrong.
But the point is, they can claim anything and everyone "is" gay. Doesn't mean they are.
Not true - one can be Christian, and still fall into sin. The question is, will you recognize it and yourself to be set free?
The difference between the "Christian" and the "Sinner" is not that the Christian never sins; it is that the Christian repents and is forgiven of his sins. The difference is not in the person - the difference is Jesus Christ in that person.
Clay is interesting. There's a kind of geeky boyish charm about him that, combined with his huge talent and bubbly, outgoing personality, should take him as far as he wants to go in show business. It's too bad the movie musical genre has been moribund for so long. It was tailor-made for someone like Clay.
BTW, Clay kind of reminds me of another skinny, geeky, boyish charmer named Fred Astaire. He also had some mannerisms that could be considered girlish. However, he most definitely was not gay.
Correct. There isn't one among us who is without sin. The difference is Christ. My good friend has come to loathe organized religion because she sees such hypocrisy among Christians, the 'hollier than thou' or 'typical' Christians. I tried to explain to her that not all Christians are that way. And that no one is perfect. We are all with sin. And we all have a way to forgiveness.
1. Recognize that you are sinning.
2. Asking for forgiveness of sin, i.e Homosexuality
3. Repent form that sin - Meaning do not do that sin anymore.
Hebrews 10:26 - For if we sin wilfully after that we have received the knowledge of the truth, there remaineth no more sacrifice for sins,
Meaning, who are you still crucifying?
>Not true - one can be Christian, and still fall into sin. The question is, will you recognize it and yourself to be set free?
>The difference between the "Christian" and the "Sinner" is not that the Christian never sins; it is that the Christian repents and is forgiven of his sins. The difference is not in the person - the difference is Jesus Christ in that person.
That covers the three things you asked about -
1. Recognize that you are sinning
>"one can be Christian, and still fall into sin. The question is, will you recognize it"...
2. Asking for forgiveness of sin, i.e. Homosexuality
3. Repent form (sic) that sin - meaning we do not sin anymore
>" the Christian repents and is forgiven of his sins the Christian repents and is forgiven of his sins"...
We have all crucified Christ through our own sins. We, as you suggest, continue to crucify Christ when we depart from what is a healthy relationship with God and/or His Creation. The question is, do we recognize that crucifixion as God recognizes it - as a chance for forgiveness and true healing? Or do we simply see it as a pre-punched "ticket to heaven"?
When we overlook the process of repentance, forgiveness and healing as a lifelong pursuit, we are missing out on our greatest chance to grow as human beings and as spiritual beings. Recognition of any sin - be it gluttony, slothfulness, greed, envy, lust, anger, or pride - is a chance to change our relationships with God and man for the better. What keeps us as Christians from continuing in the path of true forgiveness and growth is the sin of pride.
>"...one can be Christian, and still fall into sin. The question is, will you recognize it and yourself to be set free?
>The difference between the "Christian" and the "Sinner" is not that the Christian never sins; it is that the Christian repents and is forgiven of his sins. The difference is not in the person - the difference is Jesus Christ in that person."
The word, repent, is indicative that the person sinning no longer sins. There is no continuation of the sin, and if one falls back into bad habits, one repents yet again and tries even harder to make it work.
Please read the above post before you continue. I have posted the word repent three times in this post. I have not even remotely suggested that any person can continue in sin. If you truly do not understand what I am posting regarding repentance of sin, and it's place in Christian life, there is a wonderful discussion available at
Gospelcom.net: Pathway of Repentance and Growth.
Actually, (and this does not appear to refer to you, Zavien) I just got completely amazed. I referred to this article not knowing that it directly addresses those who struggle with homosexuality and Christianity - it seems that God is trying to reach someone here on this board. Someone needs to know they are not alone, and God does not abandon us to our struggles. He is there with us, every step of the way.
Zavien, I think God just used your misunderstanding to reach someone. Thanks for being persistant!
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